Road joint support



3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR Few NA 0, Eve/r52 ATTORNEY y 1943' F. o. PARKER ROAD JOINT SUPPORTS 1 Filed Feb. 6, 1941 May 18, 1943 F. o PARKER 2,319,513 now JOINT surronws Filed Feb. 6, 1941 s Sheets-Sh e et 2 IHHH ATTORNEY INVENTOR Fen/v4 0 845/54. BY 1 9 v 4 May 18, 1943 F. o. PAR-KER I 2,319,513

ROAD JOINT SUPPORTS Filed Feb. 6. 1941 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 TlII1.JD- 56 INVENTOR FP/I/V/r 04 4mm:

W ATTORNEY Patented May 18, 1943 ROAD JOINT SUPPORT Frank 0. ParkerQBuflzalo, N. Y., assignor to Acme Steel & Malleable Iron Works, Inc., Bulfalo, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application February 6, 1941, Serial No. 377,618 6 Claims. (01. 94l8) The present invention relates to expansionjoint-forming means to be used in roadways, pavements and the like, and to roadways, pavements and the like when provided with jointiorming means according to the present inven- 1 tion. i In the consideration of the present invention, 7 reference islmade to the Ahles patent, No. 2,037,-

872, and the Parker patent, No. 2,072,647, as generally disclosing more Or less the type.of joint supports and road-forming means to which the present invention relates. 7

"One of the objects of the present invention is to improve the construction of each of the joint supports whereby to render them easily handled when assembling them with the joint-filler or expansion-member.

Another object is to obtain a definite position of each support on the expansion-filler.

Another object is'to construct the joint sup- -ports so that when they are properly assembled with the expansion-filler, the entire assembly may behandled as a unit forinstallation on the u ra o the dway before the concrete is -poured.

Anoth er object is to provide the foot-members of the joint supports with improved guardgcaps :or' shoes in which the foot-membersmay slide -during ekpansion and contraction of the concrete. W I :Another object is to arrange at a different location than is covered by said Patent 2,072,647 the fastening means which temporarily and posi- -tively unites the-supports and filler untilsuch time as the expansion of the concrete renders the "fastening means ineffective.

i These being among the objects of the present invention, the same consists of certain features of construction and combinations of parts tobe hei-einafterdscribed and then claimed with ref- "erence to the accompanying drawings showing several embodiments of the invention: and wherein:

Figure 1 is a longitudinal broken section of a concrete highway showing one joint support in elevation and another one in broken lines extending in opposite'direction from the first-marr ed f-support;

Fig. 2 is a sectional plan showing two oppositely-extending joint supports on the filler;

Fig. 3 is a perspective View of one of the supports shown in Figs. 1 and 2;

. Fig. 4 is a broken elevation of Fig. 3, as viewed in the direction indicated by the arrow;

Fig. 5 is a perspective shoe; i

Fig. 6 shows a slight modification of what is shown in Fig. 1 wherein a connecting bar is used ,for connecting a series of the supports;

I nFig. 7 isa section on the line '!-1, Fig. 6;

view of a guard-cap or Fig. 8 is a perspective view of a'modified construction of joint support, the filler being indicated in broken lines;

Fig. 9 is a longitudinal section of a roadway showing the joint support and filler ofFig. 8 embedded in the concrete;

Fig. 10 is a broken plan, showing the concrete partly in section, and the joint supports of Fig. 8 partly in plan and partly in elevation and extending in opposite directions from the filler;

Fig. 11 is a perspective view of a modification oi the joint support shown in Fig. 8; and

. Fig. 12 isa perspective view of'still another modification thereof.

" Referring to Figs. 1, 2 and 3, the joint support I5 includes an anchoring-member I6, a depending abutment-member l1 and a supporting-men ber IS'which is formed as a foot at the lower end of the abutment-member H, the anchoring memher being at the upper end of-the abutmentmember, more or less as disclosed by said patents. The members M, H, l8 are formed from a single casting, and the-anch ring-inember has a suitable 'diameter togive'it the proper-strength,

the same being curved outwa'rdlyand downwardly with respect to the abutment-member l1 so'as to coact with the foot-member in the manner to bedescribed. The lower end of the anchoringmember IB- is provided with an enlargementlfl for resting on"the"sub-gra de. The distance between the' terminal enlargement 19 'of the anchoring-member and the abutmentmember "If! is preferably less than the distance between the abutment-member and the terminal enlargement of the straightanchoring-member disclosed by said patents; that is; such-distance is less than the length of member I6.

At the juncture of the anchoring-member and :1 the abutment-member a vertical web 20 is forrned :in the inner corner of the casting for the purpose "of 1 added strength. In line withitheweb 20, and "preferably-just below it; a hole 2l is formed through the abutment-memberllso that said hole lies in approximately the same plane as the saidw'eb, thereby locating the hole midway between the opposite dcwnwardlyand outwardlydiveiging edges 'of the abutment-member.-

As shown more fully in Fig. 4, the heel 22131 the foot-member is list from edge to edge of the said member, as at 23,- that is, directly below the abutment mern ber'l'l. Beyond-the heel the lower surface of the foot-member i convexly curved transversely thereof a't24, the foot-member being flat at its upper surface and the upper and lower surfacestaperin'g gradually to the tip of the footmember. v

In Figs. 1 and 2 apreformed expansion-filler 25 is shown, which 'isprovided at its lower edge with a series of recesses 26. as disclosedinmy pending applicatiomser. No; 285,032, filed July are made weak enough so as to not materially resist the contraction of the concrete; that is to say, it is more or less temporary, and to that end may be about or under a quarter of an inch in diameter, as covered by said Patent 2,073,647.

The reason why it is preferred that the temporary fastening bolt or the like is located at the center line of the abutment-member H is that the same makes a more rigid connection of each joint support with the filler, and the upright abutment-member will bear equally upon both sides upon the filler. Hence, the joint support cannot rock sideways, which was heretofore possible even though the foot-member of the joint support was engaged in a recess of the filler. Furthermore, a worker can more readily drill the hole in the filler at a point to coincide with the hole 2! in the abutment-member, and he can make sure that the hole in the filler lies in a vertical plane which bisects the length of the recess in the filler. It will be noticed in particular that the fastening 21 passes through the abutment-member I! of the joint support and through the filler at a point equidistant from each lateral edge of said abutment-member and is in the vertical plane of the axis of the anchoring member, which plane substantially bisects the foot-member 18. Also, that the weight of the opposite longitudinal portions of the joint support at opposite sides of such vertical plane are substantially equivalent to each other. In Figs. 1 and 2, a joint support 29 extends from the filler in opposite direction to the joint support 15.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 5, there is shown a guard shoe or cap 30, which goes onto the footmember of each joint support. This shoe is formed from a hollow casting, the walls of which are comparatively thick and very rigid, the thickness thereof being preferably a quarter of an inchor a little under. The reason why a hefty shoeis preferred to provide a guide for the footmember of the joint support is that when thin sheet metalis employed, the concret slab over the sheet metal shoe sometimes sinks somewhat belowthe adjacent slab to which the joint support therefor is; anchored, and that when the foot-member slide into the sheet metal shoe the friction plus the weight of said sunk. slab sometimes quickly wears outithe sheet: metal and renders it useless.

Preferably, the said shoe or cap 30 is constructed, with a top wall 3|, a bottom wall 32 and an end wall 33 (and, of course, side walls) to provide an opening 34 into the hollow interior of the castshoe.

The guard-shoe 30 is extended from its bottom wall 32 to provide an apron 35 in the plane of said wall and which extends beyond the top wall 3| so that the heel 22 of the foot-member may engage with the upper surface of said apron, thereby supporting the foot end of the joint support for movement inwardly or outwardly with respect to the shoe.

Each shoe, such as 30, rests upon the subgrade 31 when in position to have the concrete poured around the joint supports, filler, etc., so that when the concret has set, slabs 38, 39 of the roadway will be produced. An upwardlyprojecting rib 36 is cast with the shoe 30, and its object is to prevent the shoe from being pulled out of the concrete slab when the concrete contracts.

It will be seen that when the joint supports and shoes are assembled with the filler, the feet of the joint supports and the adjacent edge of the filler serve as means for holding the shoes in position so that the assembly of these parts may be readily handled as a unit to be placed on a road-bed.

When all the joint supports have been assembled as required upon th filler 25, a unitary structure is produced which will be properly supported upon the sub-grade when the filler 25 has extended transversely thereacross in the required position before pouring the concrete. Each of the foot-members will be located underneath the filler, having been entered into the bottom recesses therein, and the terminal enlargements of the anchoring-members will properly rest upon the sub-grade at a relatively short distance away from the foot-members, while each shoe 3il will also rest upon the sub-grade. As the concrete slab in which the anchoring-members are embedded expands or contracts, the terminals of the anchoring-members will slide upon the sub-grade, and the foot-members which are practically in the same plane will slide in the shoes in which they are located. Inasmuch as the foot-members sometimes move inwardly into the shoes a space is left between the closed walls of the shoes and the adjacent ends of the footmembers, as shown in Fig. 1. To enable such movement of the foot-members, the upper wall 3| of each shoe is made short enough so as to leave a space between its edge and the abutment-member H. To guard against any accidental movement of the shoes so as to strike the abutment-member before the concrete is poured, a worker may place suitable inserts of wood, such as chocks, into the spaces between the edges of the upper walls of the shoes and the abutmentmembers, which chocks will crush Whenever the concrete slabs expand. On the other hand, instead of employing little chOcks of wood, the lower edge of the filler may be formed with lips of the same material, which extend down inbetween the abutment-members and the top walls of the shoes, and of course, such lips will not interfere with the expansion of the slabs. This may be done before the assembled elements of the structural unit are placed upon the subgrade, orif the shoes are left off of the unit the;

may be placed in position after the unit has been set upon the sub-grade.

The anchoring-member l5, which is curved as shown, or generally inclined from its upper end to its lower end when used in connection with the abutment-member l1 and foot I8, not only provides a strong joint support which can be supported more or less level on the subgrade of a road, but has other advantages. The worker may grasp the lower end of the anchoring-member just above the terminal enlargement i9, when the joint support is to have its foot-member inserted into the recess in the filler and the fastening bolt is to connect the filler and point support. While so grasping the anchoring-member the worker may sight along the central plane of the foot-member, which is in the same plane as the anchoring-member; at the same time sighting along the middle of the recess in the filler, he can conveniently enter the foot-member di- Figs. "bolt 45,; which secures the adjacent faces of the 'filler and the abutment-member in close rela- 'd esc'ribed.

rectly into the recess, thus saving some time in obtaining the registration and the squaring up 'of the joint support at right-angle's to the filler.

Furthermore, as the hole 2| in theabutmentmember is in the central plane referred to; the worker having inserted thefoot-member into the recess he can quickly see if the hole 2| previously made in the filler is inregistration' therewith before placing the fastening bolt through the registering holes. If the hole inthe filler has not been made, the worker is enabled to properly and more quickly locate the hole to be drilled therein so as to register with the hole 2 I. in the abutment-member. As the distance between the heel of the foot-member and the terminal of the anchor'ing-member is not great, the worker has better control over the insertion of the foot-member into the filler recess and into the guard-cap at the same time, if so desired; whereas, if the am choring-member be considerably longer hecahnot readily control the joint support by the use of one hand, but he can do so with the described joint support, which is preferably cast, although it is conceivable that it might be made either from wrought or forged metal, although a casting is cheaper. In Figs. 6 and '7, a slight modification of thedescribed features of the joint support is shown. The joint support 50 and themlargement 4| on theanchoring-member, as well as other features of construction, are the same as shown in Figs. 2' and 3. Said enlargement is asymmetrical with respect to the anchoringmember so that the whole enlargement is'p'ro- "lcngated and has a flat undersurface which bears 'uponthe flat top surface of a connecting-bar d2 be used to connect a series of the joint supports which are ranged along'one side of thefiller, substantially in accordance with the disclosure in my aforesaid application. Ser. No.285,032. In

6 and 7. the filler 44 receives thefastening tion. The shoe 46 is similar to the shoe before In making useof themcdified construction in Figs. 6 and '1, the worker enters the flanges of the connecting-bar 42 into the sub grade, so that the web of the channel-bar will rest uponthe sub-grade. This feature is designed to assure greater stability to the joint supportt unitof as sembled members. a A

In Figs. 8, 9 and 10 a further modification is "illustrate and while this modificationpartakes generally of the described features of each joint support such as 15, features are added to'this modification. Here the jointsupport 41' is pro "vided with a headed anchoring-member 4 8,

which extends straight out from the abutmentmember 49, as in the aforesaid patents. However, the abutment-member here extends the same distance upwardly as it does downwardly from the anchoring-member 1-3. That is to say, the anchoring-member extends from the midlength of the abutment-member 591 The downwardly-extending end of the abutment-member is provided with a foot-member 53, while the up per end thereof is provided with a top-member 5!. This form of joint support is preferably made from a single casting, and the members 58, 5| extend from the abutment-member as a pair of straight parallel jaws, each being the same distance from the anchoring-member 43 as the other. Hence, this modified construction of joint support may be used either'end up, as it is constructed in the same manner both below and above the anchoring-member.

In this modification twovertical webs 52, 53 are in the corners between the abutment-member and the anchoring-member so as to reinforce the joint support at these points. A hole 56 is made in the upper end of the abutment-member, and ahole 55 in the lower end thereof, these two holes being aligned in the same plane as that in which the reinforcing webs 52, 53 extend.

In this modification, Figs. 8, 9 and 10, there is employed a filler-strip 58 preferably of wood, which is cut and trimmed to the proper dimensions for extending entirely across or partly across a highway, to which end this wood filler supports a series of the joint supports, preferably extending in opposite directions therefrom, as shown in Fig. 10. For the purpose of supporting each of the joint supports 41 rigidly and against twisting or turning on the wood filler 41, the latter is provided with an upper recess 51', and below it at the other edge of the filler with a recess 58, these two recesses being spaced apart a distance corresponding substantially with the length of the abutment-member 49. This being so, the jaws 5D, 5! of the joint support may be entered into corresponding recesses at the upper and lower edges of the filler, and when the parts are secured together by bolts 5!), 6B, the'combination of parts maybe handled as a single structural unit, and possible less care may be taken in handling the unit than in a case where the expansion-filler is composed of the usual mate-. rials which render it flexible. When the concrete slabs iii, 62 contract, the nuts on the bolts can sink into the wood of which the filler 58 is composed. However, if necessary, the bolts may be made of such a weal: material that the fastening between the filler and the joint supports will be disrupted by the contraction of the concrete slabs. I i I In Fig. 10 is shown the appearance of the sur face of the roadway provided with such modified joint supports, and the appearance below the surface. These appearances are shown respectively at the lower and the upper parts of this figure.

If guard-shoes 83 such as. disclosed in Fig. 5 have not been placed upon the lower jaws or feet 50, this is done before the concrete is poured for producing the slabs El, 62, which eventually set around the joint supports. As shown in the lower part of Fig. 1.0, it will be seen that the upper jaw 5| of eachjoint support appears flush with the upper surface of the slabs (see also Fig. 9). At the outer edge of each upper jaw 5| a space may 'be left. to ultimately receive a bituminous material, which allows for the movement of the slab when 'itexpands; Such space may be promember 64 with an anchoring-member 55, such as shown in Fig. 3.

In Fig. 12 a further modification of the joint support shown in Fig. 8 is disclosed, said modified joint support 66 supplementing what is shown in Fig. 8 by two jaw-members 61, 68, which extend in opposite directions to the other j aw-members. In this case the j aw-nembers 61, 68 will become embedded in the concrete slab which surrounds the anchoring-member, the upper surface of each jaw-member 63 being exposed at the surface of the roadway and fiush therewith.

The joint supports are preferably made of malleable iron castings, and the wear shoes may be made of metal with very hard wear surfaces, such as Z-metal.

After a number of years of practical experience in connection with the use of joint supports of the type disclosed in Patents Nos. 2,037,872 and 2,072,647, before mentioned, during which time over 3,000,000 of such supports have been put into use, it hasbeen found that the only objections which the highway departments have found thereto have been due to occasional improper installation during construction. This is caused mainly by sloppy workmanship during installation. Some of such supports have been installed so that the abutment-member is not in a perpendicular plane parallel with the filler, or the member is skewed or on the bias. it has been found that these objections can be overcome by an anchoring-member generally inclined so that the foot-member and the anchoring-member and the fastening hole in the abutment-member are in practically the same plane. It has also been found that the support is held more rigidly to the filler in its proper position by having the opening for the fastening equidistant from the edges of the abutment-member. By doing this, the center of the bolt bisects the center of the foot-member and the center of the anchoring-member. Three points of support are obtained, which during construction allows much less room for error on the part of the workman in assembling the support on the filler; or of changing the desired position of the parts after the assembly has been put in place and concrete is being poured.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that the various constructions shown and described may be modified and still be within the invention as defined in the appended claims.

What I claim as new is:

1. A guard-shoe adapted to receive the fillerengaging foot of a joint support, the shoe formed as a hollow casting of hard, wear-resisting metal with relatively thick rigid walls and having an opening in one end, and the shoe adapted to guide such foot therein as the concrete slabs of a road embedding said parts expand or contract, the bottom wall of said shoe having a foot-supporting apron extending outwardly beyond the opening.

2. A guard-shoe adapted to receive the fillerengaging foot of a joint support, the shoe formed as a hollow casting of hard, wear-resisting metal with relatively thick rigid walls and having an opening in one end, and the shoe adapted to guide such foot therein as the concrete slabs of'a road embedding said parts expand or contract, the bottom wall of said shoe having a foot-supporting apron extending outwardly beyond the opening and lying in the same horizontal plane as said wall.

After much study 3. In road-joint-forming means, the combination of a joint filler, a series of joint supports rigidly secured thereto and having feet at the lower edge of the filler and extending beyond the same, and a plurality of guard-shoes or caps receiving the projecting ends of said feet, each shoe formed as a hollow rigid casting with relatively thick walls and having an opening in one end receiving one of the feet, and each shoe adapted to guide the corresponding foot therein as the concrete slabs of a road in which said parts are to be embedded expand or contract, the bottom wall of each shoe having an apron extending outwardly beyond the opening, and the heel of each footmember resting upon each apron in bearing relation, and the parts of the thus-constructed and assembled joint-forming means being adapted to be handled and installed as a unit on a sub-grade.

4. The combination of adjacent concrete slabs of a highway, a joint filler between the slabs, joint supports embedded in the slabs at opposite sides of the filler and having feet extending below and beyond the filler in opposite directions, and a plurality of rigid guard-shoes embedded in each slab, each formed as a hollow metal casting with relatively thick walls and having an opening therein receiving a corresponding foot for guidance in the shoe when the slabs expand or contact, the open ends of the shoes extending underneath the filler and the shoes constituting wear-resisting members having a maximum strength adapted to prevent sinking of the slabs, or one of them, due to any wear between .the feet and the shoes.

5. The combination of adjacent concrete slabs of a highway, a joint filler between the slabs, joint supports embedded in the slabs at opposite sides of the filler and having feet extending below and beyond the filler in opposite directions, and a plurality of rigid guard-shoes embedded in each slab, each formed as a hollow metal casting with relatively thick walls and having an opening therein receiving a corresponding foot for guidance in the shoe when the slabs expand or contact, the bottom of each shoe having an apron extending outwardly beyond the opening therein, each of said feet bearing on a corresponding apron, and the shoes constituting wear-resisting members having a maximum strength adapted to :prevent sinking of the slabs, or one of them, due to any wear between the feet and the shoes.

6. Thecombination of adjacent concrete slabs of a highway, a joint filler between the slabs, joint support embedded in the slabs at opposite sides of the filler and having feet extending below and beyond the filler in opposite directions, and a plurality of rigid guard-shoes embedded in each slab, each formed as a hollow metal casting with rela tively thick walls and having an opening therein receiving a corresponding foot for guidance in the shoe when the slabs expand or contract, the bottom of each shoe having an apron extending outwardly beyond the opening therein, each shoe having an outward projection to prevent its moving in the slab in which it is embedded by the action of a foot therein, and the shoes constituting wear-resisting members having a maximum strength adapted to prevent sinking of the slabs, or one of them, dut to any wear between the feet a d the shoes.

FRANK O. PARKER 

